Bill Text: IA HF2234 | 2015-2016 | 86th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to the authority of peace officers to investigate and enforce human trafficking laws.

Sponsorship: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 9-5)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-02-11 - Introduced, referred to Public Safety. H.J. 207. [HF2234 Detail]

Download: Iowa-2015-HF2234-Introduced.html

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House File 2234 - Introduced




                                 HOUSE FILE       
                                 BY  NUNN, SHEETS,
                                     BRANHAGEN, FORRISTALL,
                                     PETTENGILL, WILLS,
                                     DAWSON, CARLSON,
                                     BROWN=POWERS,
                                     HEARTSILL, STECKMAN,
                                     STUTSMAN, SALMON, and
                                     KELLEY

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act relating to the authority of peace officers to
  2    investigate and enforce human trafficking laws.
  3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
    TLSB 5822YH (2) 86
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PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 80.9A, subsection 6, Code 2016, is
  1  2 amended by adding the following new paragraph:
  1  3    NEW PARAGRAPH.  h.  When engaged in the investigation and
  1  4 enforcement of human trafficking laws.
  1  5    Sec. 2.  NEW SECTION.  817A.1  Definitions.
  1  6    For purposes of this chapter:
  1  7    1.  "Employing agency" means the state agency or governmental
  1  8 subdivision that employs a peace officer.
  1  9    2.  "Human trafficking" means the same as defined in section
  1 10 710A.1.
  1 11    3.  "Peace officer" means the same as defined in section
  1 12 801.4.
  1 13    Sec. 3.  NEW SECTION.  817A.2  Statewide authority for peace
  1 14 officers to investigate and enforce human trafficking laws.
  1 15    1.  A peace officer shall have the peace officer's full
  1 16 powers and authorities throughout the state to investigate and
  1 17 enforce laws related to human trafficking.
  1 18    2.  A peace officer who investigates or enforces laws related
  1 19 to human trafficking outside of the jurisdictional limits of
  1 20 the peace officer's employing agency under the authority of
  1 21 this section shall be deemed to be acting in the scope of
  1 22 the peace officer's employment and shall not be considered
  1 23 an employee of another law enforcement agency due to such
  1 24 investigation or enforcement.
  1 25                           EXPLANATION
  1 26 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
  1 27 the explanation's substance by the members of the general assembly.
  1 28    This bill relates to the authority of a peace officer to
  1 29 investigate and enforce human trafficking laws.
  1 30    The bill defines "peace officer" as the same as defined in
  1 31 Code section 801.4, which includes sheriffs and their regular
  1 32 deputies, marshals and police officers of cities, peace officer
  1 33 members of the department of public safety, parole officers,
  1 34 probation officers, special security officers employed by
  1 35 board of regents institutions, conservation officers, certain
  2  1 employees of the department of transportation and of an
  2  2 aviation authority, and other persons as may be designated by
  2  3 law.
  2  4    The bill defines "human trafficking" as the same as defined
  2  5 in Code section 710A.1, which includes the participation in a
  2  6 venture to recruit, harbor, transport, supply provisions, or
  2  7 obtain a person for the purpose of forced labor or commercial
  2  8 sexual activity through the use of force, fraud, or coercion,
  2  9 except that if the trafficked person is under the age of 18,
  2 10 the commercial sexual activity need not involve force, fraud,
  2 11 or coercion. "Human trafficking" also means the knowing
  2 12 purchase or attempt to purchase services involving commercial
  2 13 sexual activity from a victim or another person engaged in
  2 14 human trafficking.
  2 15    The bill defines "employing agency" as the state agency or
  2 16 governmental subdivision that employs the peace officer.
  2 17    The bill enacts new Code section 817A.2, which provides that
  2 18 a peace officer shall have the peace officer's full powers
  2 19 and authorities throughout the state while investigating and
  2 20 enforcing laws related to human trafficking, even if the peace
  2 21 officer is outside of the jurisdictional limits of the peace
  2 22 officer's employing agency.
  2 23    The bill provides that a peace officer who investigates
  2 24 or enforces laws related to human trafficking outside of the
  2 25 jurisdictional limits of the peace officer's employing agency
  2 26 under the authority of new Code section 817A.2 shall be deemed
  2 27 to be acting in the scope of the peace officer's employment and
  2 28 shall not be considered an employee of another law enforcement
  2 29 agency due to such investigation or enforcement.
  2 30    Under current Code section 80.9A, a peace officer
  2 31 employed by the department of public safety does not, in all
  2 32 circumstances, have the general powers of a peace officer
  2 33 while within the limits of a city to investigate and enforce
  2 34 human trafficking laws. The bill provides that a peace
  2 35 officer employed by the department of public safety in all
  3  1 circumstances has the general powers of a peace officer while
  3  2 within the limits of a city to investigate and enforce human
  3  3 trafficking laws.
       LSB 5822YH (2) 86
       jh/rj